Rithvik Dhanjani: With AI, we are moving towards interactive content

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Boy meets girl, they fall in love and live happily ever after. That's how most love stories end. But what if there was a love story with multiple endings? Rithvik Dhanjani knew that director Harsh Dedhia was on to something when he approached him for Lost and Found in Singapore. While it sees the actor attempt a romantic-comedy after long, the reason why he gave his nod was that it is an interactive film.

"There have been interactive movies in the past, but they were mostly thrillers. There haven't been any in the romantic-comedy space," says Dhanjani. The MXPlayer movie revolves around Dhanjani's Dhruv, an introverted solo traveller, and Apoorva Arora's Sitara, an adventure-seeking girl whose paths cross during a trip. At the start of the narrative, the audience can decide whose journey they wish to follow - Dhruv or Sitara. "It gives the audience an immersive and interactive experience. I jumped [when I heard] the idea. [As a viewer], I would follow both their journeys because you want to know the other side of the story as well," he shares.

In 2018, Netflix had attempted the interactive method with Black Mirror: Bandersnatch. The film took social media by storm. While the idea is engaging in theory, the execution demands a lot of work. Dhanjani agrees, stating, "We had to shoot both sides of the stories. Not just that, we also shot all the other options leading to different outcomes."

Rithvik Dhanjani and Apoorva Arora

Point out that it is a smart way to increase viewership, especially if the audience explores each ending, and the actor says, "If it works, it is a great strategy. We are moving towards interactive content, especially with the new AI technology. It's a way to up the movie-watching experience. This could very well be the future. When it was offered to me, I wondered how tech-friendly it would be. Could people come back to the story and pick other options? [After we shot], I saw that it is user-friendly."

While the actor was assured that the team would handle any technical difficulties that might crop up, his primary concern was whether the audience would accept the format in a rom-com. "Thrillers keep you on the edge. That's why you're intrigued and choose the multiple [tracks] to see how each ends. A romantic film is about emotions more than anything. But Harsh explained to me how [the format] would work beautifully."

One of television's most popular actors, Dhanjani had tried his hand at Bollywood with Jo Hum Chahein (2011) but didn't manage to leave a mark. Almost 12 years and two short films later, he is happy to explore a movie again. Playing the introverted Dhruv, who is nothing like his off-screen persona, didn't come easy to him. He shares, "Usually, I am the one taking the lead and being proactive. I don't know how to take a backseat. So, I genuinely didn't know [how to approach the character.] Harsh helped me a lot in that regard. I've always been a director's actor."